The February 6th, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including another stupid Peter Bourjos trade rumor, ranking Mike Scioscia amongst active managers, wondering if a Mike Trout-Bryce Harper swap would actually work and much more…
The Story: Nick Cafardo hears speculation of the Angels trading Peter Bourjos to the Nationals for John Lannan.
The Monkey Says: I know I made a resolution to not rant about Bourjos trade ideas, but… screw it, because this trade rumor is the dumbest yet. Let’s follow the logic of this whole rumor chain, shall we? Early last year, the Nats put out word that they wanted a center fielder with leadoff skills. Angel fans jumped on this and worked themselves into a lather thinking they could flip Bourjos in a package for 3B stud Ryan Zimmerman. That, of course, is patently ridiculous. As the deadline drew near, Washington ramped up their search even more, dangling closer Drew Storen. As this at least made some sense for both sides, the rumor lingered, but never came to fruition. It bubbled up again this off-season before finally getting squashed by Jerry Dipoto categorically denying the notion that he would trade Bourjos. Nonetheless, the Nationals are now shopping a new trade piece so people are reconnecting dots that never should have been connected in the first place. Ironically, it all seems to be coming from the Washington side now. What kills me is that media members are running with it even though the Halos have no need at all for another starting pitcher. Sure, you can never have too much good pitching (and Lannan technically qualifies, but just barely), but Peter is the Halos’ biggest trade chip and burning him on a fifth starter makes no sense. But that’s all academic because the Angels know just how important Peter’s defense is too the team and thus there is no way they are going to trade him, at least not this year. I’d like to commend myself for not getting too worked up there. Good job by me.
The Story: Where does Mike Scioscia rank amongst the active managers in baseball?
The Monkey Says: I could make a case that he is better than Leyland, but I’m ok with him being ranked ahead of Scioscia and I think we can all agree Maddon is the best.
The Story: Does trading Mike Trout for Bryce Harper actually make sense?
The Monkey Says: This is purely hypothetical and even with that I’m sure I will still be crucified for saying this, but I would totally make that trade. I love Trout, I really do, but with Bourjos around, the Halos have a center fielder already as well as other options at the top of the order, where Trout profiles to fit best, at least early in his career. But a legit slugger to bat behind Pujols, which Harper should be, is not something the Halos will be able to get their hands on easily. The biggest objection I have heard from fans on this idea is that Trout is a great guy and Harper might be a world-class jerk. However, I would posit that having Pujols around to keep Bryce in check would mitigate that little problem and possibly even push him to higher levels than ever imagined. In any event, this is nothing more than a thought experiment because it will NEVER happen or even be discussed by the general managers involved.
The Story: The Angels signed pitcher Greg Smith to a minor league deal but did NOT invite him to training camp.
The Monkey Says: This qualifies as news because nothing else is happening. Seriously, the guy isn’t even going to be given a chance to win a big league job even though he has been in the majors before (and was generally terrible). So, um, welcome to the team, Greg!
The Monkey Says: This isn’t the first and certainly won’t be the last “Dipoto is literally the nicest guy in the world” story you will hear.
The Story: A look ahead at what is in store for the Angels in 2012 at second base.
The Monkey Says: Again, this positional preview should be just one sentence, “Don’t worry, Howie’s got this.”
The Story: Reviewing the off-season mini-camp Mike Butcher help with some of the organization’s young pitchers.
The Monkey Says: Interesting to see that this camp happens, as I had never heard about it before. It makes sense that it does go on, but for some reason it just never gets press.